England in West Indies: Should tourists look to leg-spinner Matt Parkinson for magic in final Test? | Cricket News

Uncapped Parkinson could give England’s bowling added spark if Grenada pitch is as placid as the surfaces served up in Antigua and Barbados; two spinners an option for the tourists with Parkinson potentially playing alongside the steady Jack Leach; third Test starts on Thursday (2pm UK)

Should England pick uncapped leg-spinner Matt Parkinson for the final Test against West Indies?

The pitches for England’s Test series in the West Indies have been docile and, at times, the tourists’ bowling attack has looked the same.

With their point-of-difference speedster Mark Wood sidelined by a right elbow issue, England’s pace unit has been a battery of right-arm seamers generally operating in the mid-80s miles an hour.

That’s not to say there haven’t been positives.

Chief among them is Saqib Mahmood, who found a generous amount of reverse swing with the aging ball and also impressed with the newer one on his Test bow in Barbados. He seems a definite for the third Test in Grenada.

Saqib was very eye-catching. Everybody thought that with his white-ball skills we would see him get the ball reversing and he would be dangerous with the old ball, which is terrific, but with the newer ball he was able to bowl a really good line and length and whack the ball in hard on a docile surface.

Mark Butcher on Saqib Mahmood, speaking on BT Sport

Fellow debutant Matthew Fisher plugged away and managed to extract bounce at Kensington Oval, while the seemingly indefatigable Ben Stokes made the third new ball talk in West Indies’ first innings.

Positives are fine but what England really need is greater penetration.

Chris Woakes has been extremely anodyne in this series so far with his travails away from home continuing. His Test bowling average on the road is 54.42 and his combined figures across the first two games in Antigua and Barbados read 2-172 from 66 overs at an average of 86.

In Stuart Broad and James Anderson’s controversial absence, Woakes began the series with the new ball but lost that role on day four in Barbados. The senior man becoming the overlooked man.

Chris Woakes’ overseas struggles in Test cricket have continued in the Caribbean

The lack of a seamer with express speed is not really England’s fault. The domestic scene is not jam-packed with them and the ones that are there – Wood, Jofra Archer and Olly Stone – are injured.

When there is a paucity of pace, you want a spinner to provide the X-factor – so maybe it is time to see whether uncapped leg-spinner Matt Parkinson can conjure up some magic in Grenada?

If it is, then it should be alongside Jack Leach rather than instead of him. A three-seamer, two-spinner ploy could be wise if the third Test offers up another tranquil pitch.

Leach and Parkinson forming a spin tandem, with Mahmood, Stokes and, if fit, Ollie Robinson comprising the seam attack could be the way to go.

Parkinson has played five one-day internationals and four T20 internationals for England

It would be wrong to expect miracles of Parkinson.

He is, after all, uncapped in Test cricket, has been more of a drinks carrier than a leg-spinner in international cricket over the last couple of years, and has faced questions as to whether his slow pace would prove a problem for him at the highest level.

But his first-class record for Lancashire is outstanding – 102 wickets in 32 matches at an average below 24 – and he spins the ball both ways, challenging both edges of the bat. He has mystery England are devoid of.

Regarding Parkinson’s pace, the late, great Shane Warne – whose cricketing observations were always shrewd, particularly when it came to his beloved leg-spin – saw no problems at all.

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Parkinson stirred memories of Shane Warne’s legendary delivery to Mike Gatting in 1993 with this sensational ball to Northamptonshire’s Adam Rossington last season (Footage: ECB.)

“I think Parkinson is very, very good. I really like the look of the way he bowls and I see him playing a huge part in Test cricket,” Warne said of the Lancashire leggie last year.

“A lot of people would have told him to bowl fast, but he has stuck to being true to himself and what he is good at. If I wanted a spinner to bowl fast, they would be called medium-pacers.

“Spin bowlers are spin bowlers because they spin the ball and he does that. I think he bowls a beautiful pace.”

What was evident in the second Test was that Leach, who bowled a mammoth 94.5 overs in the match, often appeared to find more turn when he dropped below 52mph and tossed the ball up.

It frustrated pundits that he didn’t do that more frequently and also that he was a bit safe with his lengths.

My only criticism would be his length. You want to bring batsmen onto the front foot and be trying to drive to extra-cover.

Carlos Brathwaite on Jack Leach, speaking to BT Sport

Leach offered England control and he did find appreciable spin at times, notably when he ended West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite’s near 12-hour vigil in the first innings with a peach of a ball that drifted in and then turned away sharply to hit the top of off stump.

But there were stages where he didn’t really threaten and he may be a tad disappointed that, for all his hard work, he only picked up six wickets.

Mark Butcher said of Leach on BT Sport: “He bowled as well as he was able to at this moment in his development as a Test match bowler.

“He is by no means the finished article – he lacks one or two extra bits of guile a spinner might need to unlock batting line-ups desperate not to get out on flat surfaces. From Jack’s point of view, it was a phenomenal performance and will give him confidence.”

Leach’s steadiness and Parkinson’s spark could be a strong combination.

England left-arm spinner Leach took six wickets across his 94.5 overs in the second Test

Sussex and former England fast bowler Steven Finn said on BT Sport: “Leg-spin is an attacking option but needs to be supplemented by another spinner who can control the run rate as a lot of the time you are building an innings around building pressure.”

West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite added: “I would love to see [Leach and Parkinson] work in tandem with Parkinson offering something more attacking.”

If the pitch is placid again in Grenada, an attacking threat is just what England may need.

West Indies and England meet in the third and final Test in Grenada, from 2pm UK time on Thursday. Follow over-by-over text commentary from 1.45pm on skysports.com and the Sky Sports app.